ABSTRACT
For the last 100 years local government has had a dual function in the British political system and still has in England. The first is to serve as one of only two levels of democracy in the political system, alongside central government; the second is to provide public services in an effective and efficient manner. Local authorities are democratically elected in their own right and they should be accountable to their local citizens. At the same time local government is also the creature of central government and must, by law, comply with its decisions. Central government often has different ideas about public services that come into sharp conflict with local government’s.
